Zanki Zero: Last Beginning

Zanki Zero: Last Beginning oozes both charm and horror in equal measure. It’s a highly enjoyable game that deserves a lot more attention than it’s getting. Perfect for fans of horror, mystery, and dungeon crawling RPGs.

Bizarre postapocalyptic fight for survival.

A fantastic dungeon crawler that provides an interesting story and allows you to focus on the aspects you enjoy the most.

Zanki Zero: Last Beginning is a surprisingly good RPG with survival elements, a mature video game able to keep on their toes those who’ll have the patience to tame a rich but demanding gameplay.

Zanki Zero: Last Beginning is a very particular Japanese-style RPG, in first person with a strongly symbolic atmosphere.

Zanki Zero drops the investigations for average survival RPG gameplay and explores themes of life, death, and rebirth with a sadistic story that goes places that Danganronpa wouldn't dare explore.

One of the most unique adventure games out there from the makers of the Danganronpa franchise. Maybe it´s not a game for everyone, but a good one indeed.

This mix of narrative adventure and dungeon crawler is interesting thanks to its story and cast, although none of its parts is outstanding.

An interesting story and concept that may be too hardcore if you are not an RPG fan, but that may fulfill your wishes if you are that kind of gamer.

Zanki Zero: Last Beginning has a riveting and intriguing story; it’s a shame then that the rest of the game feels like a series of afterthoughts thrown in at random intervals in the game’s development, and both the story and gameplay feel like they stop the other getting much momentum.

Although it attempts to combine a number of different gameplay mechanics, Zanki Zero: Last Beginning ultimately fails to bring these together in a compelling fashion. That said, it's a great visual novel, assuming you can handle the discomfort.

Zanki Zero’s unique premise and the way it connects to the various mechanics surrounding the game is noteworthy for its ambition and creativity. However, the shaky foundation of its overly simple combat engine and level designs holds it back from greatness.

There are great ideas at play, you’ll laugh from time to time, and it’s definitely a story you’ll want to follow to the end. However, where the Danganronpa games are deliciously dark and furiously inventive, Zanki often leans on sexual innuendo to entertain when it really doesn’t need to, like a fire juggler who keeps making boob and willy jokes. [Issue#162, p.82]

Zanki Zero is a meltin 'pot of genres, influences, ideas and theories, where each element has its own importance in the gameplay context.

Zanki Zero: Last Beginning is a game with lots of good ideas, some well done, others less convincing. By combining multiple genres together, the risk is not to full satisfy anyone, but despite all of these problem, it has all the potential to not be easily forgotten.

It’s the game’s zany but gripping narrative that’s the real star of the show, though. If science fiction interwoven with tales of family, loss, relationships and survival sounds like your thing, then Zanki Zero is worth a look.

Obtuse inventory aside, there are too many systems in play at the same time to fully enjoy the first class plot and characters of Zanki Zero - Last Beginning. tone down the difficulty to enjoy a great visual novel from the creators of Danganronpa.

Zanki Zero is a really entertaining blend of visual novel and survival RPG gameplay. The story is just as eccentric and zany as the Danganronpa series and features that grittiness fans have come to expect. The combat system is a little simplistic, but the human cloning makes it a really unique experience. However, the title doesn't quite hit the same deliciously dark heights as Danganronpa.

Even with its glaring flaws, no one could accuse Zanki Zero of lacking ideas. All the characters are constantly reborn clones, and their past (very brief) lives significantly impact what they do in their next lives. Plus, even though the storyline does nothing for me, it’s rare to see a game tackling themes like this head on, so I’m sure that should count for something.

Zanki Zero: Last Beginning is a credible and entertaining adventure, but its potential to stand alongside its developers' best works is hampered by its systems and story's inability to come together and elevate the experience beyond the sum of its parts.

Zanki Zero is a fun dungeon crawler set in the remains of Earth after a catastrophic event took place with a plot that feels like it belongs in the Danganronpa series. The story and gameplay will keep you curious for most of the campaign, especially if you're comfortable with the inherently disturbing subject matter and occasionally frustrating dungeon traversal.

Zanki Zero doesn’t offer as wide of an appeal as it could, but it will still likely be able to find a dedicated following that appreciates the layers of challenge it offers.

Uniqueness is one of Zanki Zero's biggest selling points, but its myriad ambitions and ideas aren't enough to obscure the elements that don't work as well. While the novelty of the game, its interesting story, and engaging exploration do a lot to carry it, it falters in some crucial spots that drag down the whole.

I was all set to jump into Zanki Zero and have a good time uncovering a mystery, crawling through dungeons and even seeing what I could pull off after several rounds of surviving, dying, and using that cloning loop to get ever stronger. Instead I found a bunch of tedium fueled by disparate systems not playing well with each other, disappointing combat, and a story that constantly tried to disguise how shallow it was via torturing its characters.